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Thursday, February 27, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,hope you are all doing fantastic! Welcome to another Random Thursday with Lin, Em and me. Thanks for reading and being a part of it. We have another interesting topic for you and I can't wait to read all your posts. I am a curious person, you know.

I know, I know. He is a Grand Master of the Yedi Order, he is green and has giant ears and I am a couple of heads taller than him. But who cares. I don't care about looks. That guy is smart, he is a fighter and he has a huge heart. You have no other choice than to want to date him.

I have a little weakness for hero-like werewolves who are the master of their pack (is he still? I got a little confused during the last season). I mean, that guy can turn into a wolf. I love animals. So a guy who can turn into one is definitely a keeper. Plus you would never have to iron that guy's shirts because he hardly wears any.

Those guys are just so damn cool. Especially Murphy MacManus of course. Norman Reedus is a pretty smart guy when it comes to picking his roles. I mean, Murphy MacManus and Daryl Dixon? Could it be any more heroic? I don't think so. Plus Norman Reedus loves animals and is an animal rights activist so that definitely speaks for him as well.

So now please tell me: Which movie or TV show character would you like to date? Happy Thursday!

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,happy Tuesday! How are you doing? Hope you are having a sunny and fantastic week. You can join the Ten On Tuesday fun on lovely Alyssa's blog. She is a sweetheart!Oh, and happy World Spay Day!

1. I recommend playing a round of Animal Scramble. It is pretty addictive and it has cute animals in it so what's not to like about it.

2. This story touched my heart. Xander is a rescued blind pug who became a certified rescue dog. He visits humans of all ages in hospitals and hospices, assists in community projects and helps raise awareness for the Hands and Words Are Not For Hurting Project. You can read more about it and watch a video about Xander here. I am in love.3. True.

4. This pony definitely has lots of fun playing with that ball. Love to see happy animals. Found on Cute Overload

5. I can't wait to check out the new show About a Boy. Loved the book. Movie was also good so I am having high expectations. 6. These are libraries. What a great idea. I don't know why I have never heard about this before. The cat seems to love it and I am sure people do so too.

7. I am a little proud: yesterday I kicked my weaker self's ass and went running. 39 minutes. Not too bad for the first time after months. I think it helped that I bought some new running pants last week. I mean, I basically had to wear them. And wearing them without actually running would be kind of stupid.

8. I feel like a Leberwurst (liver sausage) in those pants but I hope they don't look as bad as I think.

9. Last night I had another dream in which people tried to kill me. This time there was a group of guys who wanted to shoot me so I had to hide from them in an house. Then another group of people came who wanted to protect me. At some point I woke up and I could not find out who won which was kind of disappointing but I have to say that the dream itself was very exciting.10. I don't like talking on the phone at all.

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,hope you are having a fantastic time. I recently became a huge fan of wearing glasses. You know, I wore contacts most of the time but that changed when I got my Ray Ban glasses and now I wear glasses most of the time.So when Marsha from Firmoo contacted me and asked me if I would be interested in reviewing their glasses I could not say no. I mean, I guess you can't have enough pairs of glasses. Or shoes. Or purses. By the way: you can check out this link and with a bit of luck and the right timing you could catch a free pair of glasses. So I agreed and was able to pick out the glasses of my choice. Which means I received this fantastic pair of glasses in the mail only a couple of days later.

I love that they are matte and that they are black. I thought about getting a black pair of glasses before but always ended up with brown ones. So it was nice to finally be able to get some black ones.

I have always been hesitant to order glasses online because I was not able to try them on but Firmoo gives you the possibility to upload a picture and virtually try them on. Which isn't the same as trying them on in reality but it is the second best option and it is definitely fun to play around with that feature.

You can also read the reviews of other customers and check out pictures of others wearing the glasses of your choice. All in all, I had lots of fun browsing through the big selection and it took me a while to decide on my glasses but I am really happy with my choice.

I might look a big geeky because the frames are pretty big but that is what I wanted. My Ray Bans are a bit smaller and this time I wanted the full geeky experience.

I am very happy with my choice and wear the glasses a lot. The quality of the glasses is awesome. They have anti-radiation and UV coatings and the frame gives me a high-quality feel. I did not know what to expect but I am really satisfied.

I am very sorry for the stupid face I make in the pictures, that is not the glasses' fault. It's just mine. I am feeling a bit under the weather right now but I wanted to share the glasses with you as soon as possible.

I think I want my blonde hair back by the way. But yeah, that is another topic. Have you ever ordered glasses online? What are your experiences?

If you are interested in working with Firmoo as well then you can check out this link. I definitely recommend it. I had enjoyed it a lot, it was fun playing around with all the frames, Marsha (who contacted me) was very sweet and helpful and I got a fantastic pair of glasses which I like to wear a lot.

Thanks again Marsha and Firmoo for this great opportunity and fun experience.

Have a great weekend!

(Disclosure: I was provided with the product mentioned in this blog post for the purpose of review. However I was not compensated for writing a review and all opinions are my own.)

A book shelf dress? How fantastic is that. As a book worm I had to fell in love with it. It is the Jeremy Scott Bookshelf dress, a Danish designer.

2. This video.

You can find more information here. Prince William, David Beckham and Yao Ming made a video to protect the last Rhinos on earth. I wish more famous people would raise some awareness. BUT: What I don't understand is that Prince William speaks out against rhino hunting but goes on a hunting trip to Spain with his brother Harry where they kill several animals including a water buffalo and wild boars. Shame on you, guys. Where is the logic? And the compassion? You can find more information here (also a picture of Prince Harry with a dead animal). Things like that just make me incredibly sad.

I guess you already know that I am a huge fan of The Sidekick Series, a documentary featuring adopted pets and their humans. In the latest episode you can meet Ella and Stephen and honestly, this video made me cry. It is so fantastic to see wonderful people like Stephen and a sick but happy cat like Ella. Don't miss this.

A vegan Pickles & Ice Cream lip balm! This sounds too cool to be true. Totally my kind of thing. I would love to try this so badly! It is from a company called Molly Rose Lip Balms. I love to discover companies like that. Everything is handcrafted, organic and vegan. Perfect. You can check it out here.

Have a fantastic weekend!PS: Yesterday was International Love Your Pet Day...but I would say that every day should be International Love Your Pet Day. For my pets it is....

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,welcome to another Random Thursday with Lin, Em and me. Thanks so much for reading, commenting and linking up. You guys all rock!I hope you are having a fantastic week.

Well, I have thought about this a lot. I even asked David for his opinion and he said that he can't think of anything I like that I am ashamed of. And I guess he is right. I do not hate to admit that I love anything I love because I really could not care less what other people think of my taste. I like what I like and if other people think this is stupid, then it is their problem and not mine. I never had a problem to share my opinion...even if people disapproved or thought that I am not cool because I don't share their opinion. People will always be judgmental and if they don't approve of anything I like then that's okay for me.

So here are some movies others might find stupid or not worthy to enjoy but I do. The Malibu Bikini Shop - Two brothers who have just graduated from college inherit a bikini store from their aunt. Sounds like a fantastic movie to me. I am pretty sure I am the only person who ever watched this movie and I still have it on VHS somewhere. If they would show it on TV ever again, I would totally spend 90 minutes enjoying some early childhood memories. I did enjoy watching the Twilight movies. Well except of the second last, that one was boring like hell. I do not love these movies but they are definitely entertaining. I even enjoyed reading the books...even when the writing was horrible and the main female character a hot mess which you can only hate or feel sorry for. Or both. But: I felt entertained. I don't watch these movies all the time, I have watched them once but I did enjoy sitting on the couch, eating lots of chips and watching a vampire and a werewolf trying to save an annoying girl. You don't have to think, you can just sit down and relax. And sometimes that is what you need. I am aware of the fact that those books are not great literature. That the movies are not award-worthy. I don't care. In my opinion I do have a good taste in movies, shows and books. And I don't care if there are some pieces among those which are not worth to be proud of. One of my favorite movies ever is The Sword in the Stone. Do I hate to admit that I love children's movies. Of course I don't. This movie is fantastic, funny, exciting and it has an important message. What is not to love about it. Some people might look down on you because you love to watch movies which are made for children. Who cares. People who are afraid to be childish totally miss out.

Okay, and here are some other movies that others might find disturbing or weird or embarrassing or boring or stupid - which I totally like. Can't buy me love - Patrick Dempsey before he was McDreamy as a nerd fighting for the love of a girl. And mowing the lawn. I love it. Also Seth Green is in that movie. It's one of my childhood favorites.

Camp Cucamonga - Jennifer Aniston is in it. And Steve Urkel. Also a favorite movie from my childhood. It is about romance and pranks. That pretty much sums it up. Dodgeball - A group of misfits enter a Las Vegas dodgeball tournament in order to save their cherished local gym from the onslaught of a corporate health fitness chain. Makes me laugh every single time I watch it. They make jokes about Germans plus Chuck Norris is in it.

Bud Spencer and Terrence Hill movies - I am not sure if this is an only European thing or not. Maybe you can help me out. Who else knows them? They are basically about punching people. A lot. Just Bud Spencer movies -for example "Der Große mit seinem außerirdischen Kleinen" - A young humanoid alien who gets stranded on earth hooks up with a grizzled old sheriff in a western town and tries to help him solve a tough case, but the sheriff doesn't want any help from a "kid." - does that sound like something you might be embarrassed about?

Baseketball - Two childhood friends are pro athletes of a national sport called BASEketball, a hybrid of baseball and basketball, and must deal with a greedy businessman scheming against their team. Stupid story but very entertaining.Bubba Ho-Tep - Elvis and JFK, both alive and in nursing homes, fight for the souls of their fellow residents as they battle an ancient Egyptian Mummy. How can you not love this. Die Lümmel von der ersten Bank - and all other Hansi Kraus movies. Definitely a German thing. Those are movies from the 60's, they take place in a school and are all about making fun of teachers and playing pranks. Roy Black movies and shows - especially "Ein Schloß am Wörthersee", a German TV series about a hotel at a lake. As exciting as it sounds but it reminds me of my childhood (it is from the 90s). I even visited that hotel once. Wayne's World - You just have to love Wayne and Garth. Especially Garth. Bio-Dome - again, not sure if I am the only one who watched this movie. This is a typical Sunday afternoon movie for me. "Moronic best friends get themselves locked inside the Bio-Dome, a science experiment, along with a group of environmental scientists for one year." As you can see, I love movies with great plots. What movie do you love but are ashamed to admit it to the rest of the world?

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,how are you doing? I hope you are enjoying your week! Have you checked out our Three stories of going vegan on Celeste's blog yet?I am linking up with Alyssa and you can do the same here.

1. You should all visit my friend Martha's blog Quick Cheap and Pretty because you can win a fantastic set of vegan make up brushes. Plus Martha is brilliant so you should visit her anyway. 2. I realized that I don't really need that much sugar in my diet when I tried cutting out refined sugar for five days. I can drink my tea without sugar and I don't need any processed food with sugar in it. I did need a piece of vegan chocolate cake on Sunday.3. Pretty generous. It is good to hear some good things once in a while: Dutch and Swedish lotteries make the largest donation ever ($21+ million) to fight rhino poaching. You can read more about it here.

4. A couple of days ago I realized that I had only seen the first 15 minutes of Superbad which is why I decided that it was time to watch the full movie. And I have to say that I did not regret it. It seems like Daisy from Bones only accepts annoying roles. I was surprised to see her in that movie.

5. Last night in my dream a girl tried to kill me with a hammer while I was in the basement searching for something. She did not succeed.

6. I don't know much about the meaning of dreams but people always try to kill me in my dreams (they never succeed and I am not scared) and I am sure it reflects that I read a lot of crime novels and watch a lot of Criminal Minds.

I totally fell in love with this sweater by Vaute Couture and I was devastated to see that it is sold out. I hope it will be back in stock soon because I think it is absolutely fantastic.

2. The friendship between two blind cows.

You can find the video on Cute Overload. Please check out Farm Sanctuary as well, they do fantastic and inspiring work.This video really made me cry. Because it is so beautiful. It is good to have a reminder that there are still lots of people out there who love animals, care for them and give them a second chance. Thank you!

If I can't have my own library right now then I need this at least. I am sure it looks fantastic when you fill it with all your books. Well, I think I need two of them. Or three. I am in love. With a book shelf.

Friday, February 14, 2014

I am still living the sugar free life! Well, no refined sugar at least, I do eat fruits. If I could not eat any fruits then I would have a problem.

Last night I woke up at 3 am and I felt terrible. All I could think of was cake, chocolate, candy, pie, pudding, chips, hot chocolate....It was horrible, I can tell you. My body needed some sugar. I could not take it any longer. So I got up, walked to the fridge, opened it and grabbed anything I craved. I felt so relieved...but I also knew that I failed.,,,

Well, that is what I thought would happen at some point.

But it did not (at least not yet). I am still staying strong. I am still living without adding any refined sugar and avoiding food that contains any sugar. And surprisingly, it isn't that bad. I really expected that there would be any weird cravings but that did not really happen. Of course, when I saw a vegan apple pie I thought that I could eat a piece of that. But I did not feel like I had to eat a piece.

I probably ate an unhealthy amount of raisins over the last couple of days...I don't know how many raisins count as unhealthy but I ate a lot. And nuts. Lots and lots of nuts, unsweetened yogurt, brussel sprouts, broccoli, chick peas, potatoes, coconut milk, bananas....I made a lot of smoothies, drank a lot of tea....it was actually pretty healthy what I ate but I also think that I ate more than usual. I don't know why but I think I had to made up for all the missing sugar. If that makes any sense. But I ate so healthy (except of the 17 pounds of raisins) that I feel totally fine. I think I even lost 20 grams. Haha. I don't weigh myself very often so I don't really keep track of my weight.

So yes, I am feeling fine and I am not having any weird cravings. Only one more day of my experiment left. I will definitely try to eat as less refined sugar as possible but I am also looking forward to eating some cookies or chocolate at some point soon.

Thursday, February 13, 2014

happy almost Valentine's Day. Lin, Em and I are happy that you are a part of it. You guys rock!

Before I start: please take a minute and sign this petition. Another zoo in planning to kill a baby giraffe.

I have to say: I am not a fan. It is not that I hate Valentine's Day...it's more like: I don't care very much. I don't know, but I don't need a special day to show my love. I can do that any day of the year. I am also a huge fan of surprises...and let's be honest: roses on Valentines Day are not the biggest surprise ever. But I guess I should also admit that I am probably not the most romantic person ever.

But I am still able to point out some good and bad things about Valentine's Day. Here you go...

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,I am still sugar-less and still alive. Woohoo. Hope your week is going fine as well. You can read more about my sugar-less adventure here and here.And you can link up with Alyssa on her blog. I am sorry for being one day late.

1. I need to find some running pants I like. Turns out: not that easy. 2. I guess you already know that I love the sidekick series. You have to check out the latest video of Suzanna and her dog Hans who is named after the Die Hard villain. Love it. And I can't even say how much I love the fact that Suzanna's and her fiance's other dog is called Guybrush.

5. I really don't want to tell you what I want to do to the guy who is responsible for the killing of the baby giraffe Marius in the Copenhagen Zoo. I am so sad and angry, I can't even tell you.

6. But I have to say that I feel the same way about the people who kill innocent cows, chicken, pigs, bunnies etc. every single day.

7. I am currently addicted to the smell of lavender. I don't know why I never realized before how good it smells.

8. Have you watched "Broad City" yet? It's about two girls in New York and it is hilarious. And disturbing. I really like that show but the one girl with the curly hair (I am bad with names) is probably the worst dog walker ever and that is why she annoyed me so much in the last episode. Which is why I hope that she will never get close to any animal again...and then I can go on watching the show.

9. Sugar-free update: I found some some soy yogurt without sugar today. I guess it is kind of sad and hilarious at the same time how I excited I got about sugar free yogurt in the middle of the health food store. But hey, you need to appreciate the small things in life.

10. I am so surprised by the fact that there are so many products out there that contain sugar. Which are not even sweet.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Hallo meine Lieben,yes, I am still alive and I did not run to the store at midnight to get a bottle of Dr. Pepper or starting baking a chocolate cake. Actually, I am surprised that I did not have any sugar cravings last night.

I confess: I am the cookie monster. I am sure there are some sugar-free cookies out there...Somewhere?

It was a pretty spontaneous decision to cut out sugar for five days. I have read about it Sunday and bam, decided to start Monday.

Breakfast.

So far so good....my first problem was the breakfast. I usually eat bread with either vegan wurst or cheese. So I went to the fridge and grabbed the packages...I was prepared for the worst but thanks to the vegan breakfast god: there was no sugar in my cheese or wurst. Thank you! Well, I already told you that I asked the lady in the bakery if my bread contains any sugar which she denied and I was happy because the chewy part of my breakfast was safe!I was only left with the liquid part of my breakfast: I usually drink a coffee and a tea for breakfast. And yes, I do love my tea very sweet but I believed in myself and managed to drink a sugar free tea which actually wasn't that bad. I could get used to that!The coffee was the bigger problem because I only had vanilla soy milk in the fridge which contains lots of sugar. So no coffee for me in the morning because I just can't drink black coffee.

The snacks.

I solved the coffee problem by buying unsweetened rice milk which isn't as yummy in my coffee than the vanilla milk but I guess it should be fine for 5 days. I usually eat a huge bowl with fruits and raisins (I guess they count as fruits too. I mean, they are dried grapes. Duh.), coconut flakes, walnuts and plain soy yogurt. As I already told you yesterday, I was shocked to see that there is even sugar in my plain yogurt. Epic fail. I really did not expect this. So I ate my yogurt bowl without yogurt which wasn't as satisfying as usual but it was fine.

I am not a huge lunch eater, I prefer breakfast and dinner. So I only had some more bread. I am German, you know.

Dinner.

I decided that you can't go wrong with veggies because they are fresh and do not contain any refined sugar. But just veggies is a bit boring, even for me (David says I eat the same stuff than the bunnies) so I decided to add some couscous and a spicy sauce. I thought that brussel sprouts, mushrooms and broccoli are a good choice and roasted everything in a pan, added the couscous, grabbed my bottle of sriracha sauce....and stopped. Sugar in the sriracha sauce. Huge disappointment since I eat that stuff with pretty much everything. But yeah, not that I don't have a huge selection of spices. I love spices and everything I cook is really spicy. So yeah, I decided to make a nice curry....grabbed the jar with curry paste....and stopped. Sugar in the curry paste! Come on! There really is sugar in everything. I double checked that there is no sugar in coconut milk, added ca. 46 different spices and had a yummy sugar-free meal which only was a little nerve-wracking.

I mostly had tea and sparkling water all day. I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of water which probably isn't the best thing in the world but what can I do. I hate normal tab water (boring like hell and tasteless) and I am not a huge fan of sparkling water either (I guess I have that in common with America, you never get that there) but it is a whole lot better than just still water. But my favorite juice (apple and rhubarb) contains sugar so I can't drink that right now. Boo.

I thought I would have really bad chocolate cravings in the evening. I expected to stand in front of the fridge at night and trying to resist all the temptations...but no. Nothing happened. I guess it will happen soon though....so stay tuned.Have a lovely Tuesday!